First episode of 2026 and we’re setting the frame for what matters this year: AI is hitting escape velocity, “creation” is getting commoditized, and that changes everything from business models to the metaverse thesis.
We talk through the cultural shift (the 2025 existential turn), why low-sentiment periods are when you should be paying the most attention, and how social media incentives reward overreaction. Then we zoom out to the macro: metals ripping, Bitcoin lag dynamics, and what a “real” 2026 setup could look like.
On the crypto side, we dig into the creator coin debate and why the fan-to-investor switch breaks expectations, using the Nick Shirley Zora post as a live case study. Finally, we share our north star: a world where CoinGecko has an “NAT” tab, non-arbitrary tokens become a real market category, and miners distributing NAT becomes the moment the market can’t ignore.
On podcast episode 99 we discuss the inevitable rise of Bitcoin to the projected price of $100,000. There are two models in particular that Bitcoin seems to follow and that's the non-linear regression curve as well as stock-to-flow ratio. After 10 months of operation we're happy to announce 3 million in mana processed through MetaZone! Over 2 million has been sent to creators as we collectively build the metaverse together. Fewocious drops NFTs on Niftygateway. Finally Cover Protocol gets exploited by Grap Finance and returns the funds!
Recently we experienced a little dip in the altcoin market in the range of 10-20% as we prepare for the upcoming bull cycle. Fluctuations of this magnitude will happen more often as prices rise. Ripple is leading this epic fall as the SEC gears up for a lawsuit for $1.3 billion securities fraud. On the opposite side of the coin we have The Graph just launching and showing strong momentum. We break down The Graph, what it is, and why they could be in the top 10 one day. Finally we take a look at Inverse Finance, potentially to be added to the Yearn Finance pool of protocols. What's the origin story of Inverse Finance and we determine whether you should keep an eye on it.
When we first started The Block Runner podcast, it was at the very bottom of the most recent bear cycle for Bitcoin. If you listen to the earliest episodes we identify how the $3k price would be the low for this cycle. On today's podcast, we usher in the next stage of Bitcoin breaking the previous all time high and reaching as high as $23,500! We know that 2019 was the year for institutional accumulation and now they're beginning to discuss their investment into the first cryptocurrency. The non-linear regression curve has been a pretty accurate representation as to the trajectory of Bitcoin. Coinbase has filed for an IPO likely tapping into a larger source of funding, coming in at a perfect time at the beginning of this hype cycle. Finally, Microstrategy drops their cash reserves into Bitcoin because the US dollar is a liability.
Episode 96 covers a number of developments this week. In the metaverse, Corona Zombies shows a way to earn NFTs by participating in contracts. Beeple unleashes an all new record for the NFT space by launching physical representation of his Everyday art. Over 3 days, Beeple sold NFTs and their physical representation for $3.5 million over 3 days. Even Iman took part and purchased a an infected Pikachu art from Beeple! Finally the CEO of Nexus Mutual, which provides insurance for your staked crypto, got hacked and lost $8 million.
We take a step back to gain perspective on the DeFi space. There's an all time high in locked liquidity at $14 billion and we correlate the last DeFi bull run with the all time high GAS prices. Yearn Finance leads the DeFi race at the moment and the founder Andre Cronje has created an ecosystem to keep an eye on. One of those ecosystem projects is called Keep3r Network is one protocol gaining traction. Finally we end with a discussion on Steve Wozniak's splash in the cryptocurrency space with Efforce token.